


We Have History

by Jeniouis



Category: Black Panther (2018)
Genre: AU So No Spoilers, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, F/M, Gen, M/M, Mpreg, Omega T'Challa, Shuri is not T'Challa's sister, Teen Parenting, Underage Sex (On Both Sides), Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-20
Updated: 2018-03-11
Packaged: 2019-03-21 15:57:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13744338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jeniouis/pseuds/Jeniouis
Summary: When T'Challa stands in M'Baku's throne room, he can't help but think about their long history. Back when they were two stupid kids doing stupid things.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I adored the Black Panther movie and I have so many fics that I want to write for it. This will probably be finished very quickly (don't give me that look, I'm serious this time).
> 
> I hope you like it!

**\- Age 4 -**

"T'Challa!"

The boy snapped around when he heard his called name. He usually only heard this tone when he had done something he wasn't supposed to. But right now, if he was breaking a rule he wasn't aware of which one. He hadn't been doing anything. Just walking towards his friends.

But he didn't tarry. He knew better than to take too long when his father called him so intently.

"Baba?" T'Challa said timidly when he reached his father, hoping he wasn't in trouble.

His father looked down at him, firm yet gentle. "Where were you going?" His Baba said as he reached down and picked the boy up, carrying him back into the castle.

It seemed to be the only place his father wanted him to be.

"To meet my friends," T'Challa said, still uncertain about what he had done wrong.

"The doms?" Baba said.

Oh. That.

"They're my friends, Baba. You never said I couldn't play with them." T'Challa said, burying his face in his father's shoulder. Hoping Baba wasn't angry with him. He tried not to upset his Baba. It just got lonely roaming the big, empty castle by himself.

"I said you shouldn't. It's the same thing. You know that." Baba said, scolding but not forcefully. "You have to be careful T'Challa. I don't want anyone to hurt you."

T'Challa lost his little breath. He couldn't imagine any of his friends trying to hurt him, not on purpose anyway.

"But Baba, they're my friends," T'Challa repeated. Hoping his father would understand. His friends weren't mean.

Baba sighed as he entered the kitchen, sitting T'Challa down on the table. He rubbed the boys cheek, something changed in his eyes. T'Challa didn't know how to explain it. Baba looked a little sad.

"Just because someone says they're your friend, T'Challa, doesn't mean they truly are. People lie. You must be aware of it. You must be prepared for it."

T'Challa's eyes went wide. "My friends would lie to me, Baba? Why?"

"Anyone would lie to you, son," Baba said as he reached into the cabinet below the counter, grabbing a box of cookies. "People lie for a lot of different reasons. When you are older you will understand. But for now, stick close to your Baba, okay?" His father said, handing T'Challa a cookie.

"Okay, Baba," T'Challa said. His father smiled and patted his cheek. T'Challa was glad Baba was happy again.

**\- Age 10 -**

"We shouldn't be here," Okoye said, crouching beside him as he dropped to his knees, getting close to the edge of the forest to look out.

"I agree. Let's go back home." Nakia said, crouching on the other side of Okoye, looking around nervously as if she heard something.

"We'll be fine." T'Challa insisted, determined not to go anywhere. "Girls are scared of everything." His comment gained him a light punch in his arm by Okoye. It didn't hurt but T'Challa grabbed his arm in exaggeration anyway.

"Okoye, you know better than to hit an omega," Nakia said. "They're weak things, you know that." She was trying to keep a straight face but her smile was breaking through.

"Hey, omegas can hit twice as hard," T'Challa said, "I can prove it."

"You'll be too busy having babies." Okoye said, adding, "Probably Nakia's babies." Before T'Challa could properly glare at her. Nakia growled and pounced on Okoye. The two alphas rolled in the grass, play wrestling. Had they been serious, there would be blood and broken bones by now.

T'Challa chuckled and looked back past the forest, down toward the flat land where the Jabari trained their young soldiers. Baba told him to not come here, especially not alone. So he was only being half disobedient. Not that he thought his father would take that into much consideration should they be caught.

Baba still kept T'Challa locked in the castle, whenever he wasn't training. Admittedly, that was a small amount of time but it was still hard to blindly accept such confinement. Luckily, his father let him hang around Okoye and Nakia. Baba told him that they were genuine. They were also Dora Milaje in training. T'Challa always thought that was the real reason Baba let them be his friends. They would never betray the royal family.

"Who goes there!" A voice boomed, shocking the three children. They all jumped into their defensive stances, the way they were taught. And T'Challa was already trying to work out a combat strategy, the way Baba taught him to but then incessant laughter followed and the omega already knew who it was.

T'Challa exhaled his frightened breath and smiled. "M'Baku, don't scare me."

The alpha laughed again walking up to them, "Why not, Prince. You obviously know to defend yourself." He patted T'Challa's head and the omega swatted his hand away, rolling his eyes.

Besides him, T'Challa could feel his companions emitting discontent like a gas bomb; he could feel the glares boring holes in the back of his head but he ignored it. M'Baku was a friend. And even though he had rough edges, T'Challa found him genuine.

"What brings you to the mountains, Prince?" M'Baku said, giving Okoye and Nakia a strange, narrow look. T'Challa didn't even look back at them. He knew they were glaring the alpha down.

T'Challa opened his mouth to answer but heard an angry, thunderous, "T'CHALLA!" And he immediately started running in the direction opposite of the familiar voice. Okoye and Nakia were close behind but M'Baku grabbed his arm. His friend immediately dropped to defensive stances.

"I know a shortcut back to the mainlands," M'Baku said, his eyes and voice full of amusement. Then the alpha turned and started walking down the hill. T'Challa easily followed him. There were many shortcuts and this wasn't the first time he's been in this situation with M'Baku. They met last year when T'Challa snuck away long enough to walk this far. M'Baku never led him anywhere dangerous.

But when Okoye said, "Are you seriously following this buffoon?" T'Challa knew it would be best to keep their history to himself.

"It's fine." The omega insisted. The two were going to follow him anyway, if nothing more than because that's what the Dora Milaje did.

They came to a cave in a wall just a few feet from the training grounds. M'Baku grabbed a torch from the spoke on the wall and walked through, barely fitting. He was only three years older than T'Challa but he was huge. But all the Jabari were huge.

"I just want to meet the entire kingdom," T'Challa said randomly as he followed M'Baku.

"Hmm," The older alpha said, obviously having already forgotten the question he asked.

"That's why I came here. Baba wants to keep us separated but we are all Wakandan, aren't we?" T'Challa said. He heard scoffs from behind him but M'Baku looked back at him, a small smile gracing his lips.

"I like the way you think but no. It's not that simple, Prince." M'Baku said. Then turned around and kept going.

T'Challa almost asked him what he meant but he stopped just before the words left his lips. He didn't think he wanted to know. And he would probably find out anyway, in his training.

Just before too long, T'Challa saw a brighter light ahead of them. Then he heard people. Lot's of them. Thousands of them. Somehow they were back at the market and T'Challa couldn't have been happier. It would be far easier to tell Baba they were just roaming the market than trying to explain why they were at the border of Jabari.

M'Baku stepped out at the end of the tunnel but kept his face hidden when he saw the military tribe guarding the borders. Jabari weren't much appreciated anywhere.

"Thank you," T'Challa said as he climbed out.

M'Baku simply smiled and climbed back into the tunnel. T'Challa looked at the green, flat grassland before him. He looked back at his friends with a grin, and they smirked back. They started running forward. Their tattoos lit bright purple as they passed through the protective shield that encased Wakanda and slid down a sharp hill, rolling out into the busy streets, almost crashing into people. He heard angry shouts, telling him to behave and watch where he was going. T'Challa quickly apologized to the people, his people. Then, they ran like hell back to the castle, not even stopping to take a break when they were tired. Of course, they've endured worse in training. T'Challa has literally ran for three hours straight. Baba said something about strengthening his endurance and stamina but T'Challa still thought it was ridiculous.

T'Challa thought of something right before they ran through the front doors so he stopped, catching his breath, and signaled for Okoye and Nakia to stop as well. Their eyes asked him what was wrong but they were too busy panting to form words.

When the omega could finally speak he said, "If we went in, out of breath, Baba would know we were up to no good." Understanding brightened in their eyes. T'Challa remembered one time, when he was a child, he asked his father why do people lie. He understood now.

But then the doors opened and his mother walked out with the royal advisors. When her gaze fell on them, her eyes widened in shock, then narrowed in silent chiding.

"T'Challa, where were you, young man?" His mother asked, her voice quiet yet cutting.

The three crossed and uncrossed their arms, dropping to a knee. "At the market, mama," T'Challa said. Wishing he were speaking to his father. He was easier to lie to. His mother had a way of looking at him, as if she could see right through him, staring right at the truth in his heart.

"At the market?" His mother echoed.

T'Challa nodded. "Yes, mama."

She hummed a little and her gaze softened. "Alright then. Your father went looking for you. He'll want to speak to you when he get's back."

T'Challa nodded as he stood. "Okay, mama." She smiled and patted his cheek. She looked at his two friends, "Make sure he stays out of trouble." She said, but there was humor in her voice.

"Yes, Queen." They said in unison. She smiled as she and the advisors descended the long stairs that led to their castle.

Okoye stalked in front of him with a heated glare. "Never again!" She said.

T'Challa rolled his eyes. "Fine, fine." He said because he didn't want to argue right now. He was too busy worrying about what would happen when Baba came back.

Nakia came to the front too. "You know him!" She accused.

"What are you talking about?" T'Challa said as he walked through them into the castle but once inside they just rounded in front of him again.

"M'Baki, M'Bako, whatever his name is. You know him. You've gone out there before?" Okoye said.

"You've met with him before?" Nakia said. Okoye gave her a quick, knowing glance before locking her eyes on him again.

"He's..." T'Challa looked around, making sure no one, not even the guards were near. "He's a friend," T'Challa whispered. "I met him at the market. He's strange...but he's very nice too."

"He is Jabari!" Okoye whispered, but not at all quiet like a whisper should be.

"I know but...Jabari is still Wakandan. They are still part of us." T'Challa said. The two looked at him for a long time before they sighed and relented.

"Fine." They said.

"Promise me you won't tell anyone," T'Challa said. And when he saw their hesitation, "We're just friends. Not even. He's just someone I know."

The two looked at each other. "We'll see," Nakia said before they turned around and walked away.

"Losers!" T'Challa yelled at them.

"That's not helping," Nakia yelled back.

-

It was night and T'Challa was just getting ready for bed when he heard knocking on the door. The events of the day had been forgotten until he heard the crisps sound of skin against wood that was distinctly his father's.

And he started bubbling with panic.

'Just don't act guilty.' T'Challa told himself as he went to his door and opened it.

His father looked down at him expectedly.

"Baba!" T'Challa yelled and hugged his father as if he hadn't seen him in years, instead of just this morning. He silently cursed himself for overreacting.

"T'Challa, where were you this afternoon," Baba asked.

T'Challa pulled back. "At the market." He tried to speak confidently but his voice wavered a little.

His father's eyebrows raised in disbelief. "You weren't roaming the forest looking for a Jabari by the name of M'Naki?"

Okoye and Nakia will pay for this. They will pay for his deeply.

T'Challa knew better than to rise to the bait so he said, "Who?" His father narrowed his eyes at him.

"T'Challa," Baba said as he walked in, his tone let the young omega know a lecture was soon ahead. "What have I told you over and over again?"

"That the Jabari have separated themselves." T'Challa answered automatically as he closed his doors. He turned around but didn't leave the door. He couldn't force himself too. He just stood there with his hands folded behind his back. Baba taught him that disobedience to the doms closest to them caused submissive behaviors in omegas.

"No, the other thing," Baba said as he patted the bed beside him and T'Challa's feet finally moved. He sat beside his father but looked down at his hands. "I told you to be careful of the people you surround yourself with. Doms, especially alphas, will try to manipulate. You have to be very careful, my son. I don't want anyone to hurt you."

"I know, Baba," T'Challa said honestly.

"Yet, you seem to always get yourself into trouble."

T'Challa deflated. "I just want to get to know my people, Baba."

"You have plenty of time to do that. When you are older and ready. For now, you need to stay close to the castle, close to your Baba." His father said, wrapping an arm around T'Challa, holding him close. "It worries me when you're not near."

T'Challa nodded. "Okay, Baba."

"That's what you said last time," Baba said as he touched the omega's chin and raised it so their eyes could meet. "Promise me you'll behave this time." T'Challa sighed. His father knew that T'Challa never broke a promise. He'd feel too remorseful if he did.

The omega begrudgingly said, "I promise, Baba."

Baba smiled, kissed his hair. "Good boy."

**\- Age 11 -**

T'Challa kept his promise. He hadn't left the immediate proximity of the castle in nearly a year. T'Challa missed his friends. Not just M'Baku but W'Kabi and N'Jandu and Ryo. But T'Challa knew his father only wanted what was best for him. And he still got to hand with Okoye and Nakia. They were extremely glad he stopped dragging them along for his adventures.

But it wasn't until one day when T'Challa was exploring the woods, not far from his home, that he realized just because he couldn't go out, didn't mean that his friends couldn't come in.

Admittedly, he didn't figure this out on his own.

He was wandering the flattened path alone when a booming, "Who goes there!" disrupted his peace.

T'Challa jumped into a defensive stance, much more adept now that he's had vastly more training. But then he heard laughter and he grew excited.

"M'Baku!" T'Challa shouted happily, though his still couldn't see the alpha.

He was suddenly lifted into the air, onto M'Baku's tall shoulder.

"Young Prince! I thought you were dead. It's been a long time since you've come to the mountains."

"I have missed you," T'Challa said sincerely. "But Baba, he won't allow me to leave the castle."

"To Jabari," M'Baku said. His voice purposely calm.

"To anywhere. I am confined here." T'Challa said.

M'Baku hummed a little, as he started walking down the path. "If my son was an omega, I'd probably confine him to the castle too."

That shocked T'Challa. "Why?"

"You are the only omega in the nation, Prince. And alphas can be vicious. Safety is a concern." M'Baku said.

T'Challa silently thought about what he said; thought about what his father preached to him. "I'm safe with you, aren't I?"

M'Baku looked up at him, his smile bright, his eyes genuine, "Of course. I would never let anything happen to you."

T'Challa smiled.

Though he...he kept hearing a voice in the back of his head. He heard his father telling him, 'Just because someone tells you they're your friend, doesn't mean they are. People lie, T'Challa.'

And the omega hoped with the depths of his heart that M'Baku wasn't lying to him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge thank you to everyone who likes the story so far!
> 
> Just a fyi: M'Baku is three years older than T'Challa. Okoye and Nakia are a year older.
> 
> I don't know why I lied to myself and thought I could wrap this up in three chapters but it might actually end up being five or six. The story keeps getting bigger the more I work on it.
> 
> I hope everyone is in character and I hope you continue to like the story.

Ramonda could not take it anymore. It was getting ridiculous. Childhood was supposed to be a time to gather fond memories with friends and family. But her poor son was practically being held captive. 

T'Chaka and she have talked about it before but she's never challenged him about it. She, too, had selfishly wanted to keep T'Challa sheltered. He was her baby, of course she wanted to protect him. But for this past year, she's seen him drift away from his friends and he seemed so lonely. What else could he possibly be? 

Now, she was putting her foot down. 

She walked into T'Chaka's personal study and found him leaning against his desk, reading a report from one of his War Dogs. He looked up at her curiously, obviously not wanting to be torn away from his work. But she didn't care. 

"We need to talk about T'Challa. The boy is a prisoner in his own home and I will not accept it any longer." 

He groaned, lying the documents on the desk, "Ramonda, he needs to stay close to us until he learns who to trust." T'Chaka said. 

She huffed. "That was fine when he had been a boy but T'Challa is almost a young man now. And we are still treating him as if he is an infant. How is the boy supposed to learn if you don't let him?" She said. "A father is supposed to prepare his children for his death. Have you done that, in keeping him tightly under your wing?" 

T'Chaka paused, then sighed softly. "Someone will hurt him." 

"Yes, they will." She said. "But that's going to happen regardless, more than once. That's life, T'Chaka. We must prepare him for it. Not try to keep him from it. Every day you keep him locked up in this castle, the more you are the one that's hurting him." 

He looked away, biting his cheek the way he did when he was thinking hard. "Then what am I supposed to do?" 

"Let the poor boy live." She said. "T'Challa is a good boy. A little mischievous, yes. But he got it by the honest. All this time with his father has rubbed off on him." 

"Ah!" T'Chaka waved a dismissive hand, "I have always been responsible." T'Chaka said, though there with humor in his voice. 

She walked to him, wrapping her arms around her husband. "Let the boy grow and live just as you have your entire life." 

He pursed his lips in though, and was thinking for a very long time before he relented, saying, "Fine, fine. But if anyone hurts him, they'll have to contend with my wrath." 

Ramonda chuckled. "I wouldn't have it any other way." 

**\- Age 12 -**

"You smell different." W'Kabi said after he knocked T'Challa down with a shield. But the young warrior was quick and knocked W'Kabi's legs from under him. The alpha tried to get back up but the omega hopped to his feet and knelt over the alpha, holding a spear to his neck. 

"Different?" T'Challa echoed. Stepping away when W'Kabi yielded. But when the alpha was at his feet, he pulled a sword on the omega, thrusting forward. But T'Challa anticipated the sneak attack and knocked the sword away with his spear and kicked W'Kabi back. 

W'Kabi was a lot older than him, being twenty. He was T'Challa's combat trainer. It took a long time for Baba to even assign a trainer to him. It took even longer for his father to decide his direct supervision was no longer needed. The omega was glad baba chose someone who was one of his friends. 

He also started letting T'Challa leave the castle more. He had a curfew though, while most kids his age were beyond such confinements but he gladly took any amount of freedom he was given. 

It didn't slip past him that baba often sent Okoye and Nakia after him whenever he's been gone too long (at least to Baba) by himself. But he didn't mind. The two we're his best friends and he didn't often leave the castle alone. 

"Your scent is thicker." Okoye said suddenly from behind him. T'Challa spun around and blocked her overhead attack with his spear, then immediately jumped to the side and blocked W'Kabi's attack. 

"Is it distracting?" T'Challa said as he swung at Okoye and kneed her in the stomach when she blocked his blow but W'Kabi kicked him down from the left. 

"Good. But you're still leaving your sides open. You have to be quicker." W'Kabi said as he offered the omega a hand up. 

"Not distracting but definitely noticable." Okoye said. "Do you know what this could mean, T'Challa?" She got close to him and whispered in his ear. "Babies." She still didn't know the proper volume of a whisper. 

T'Challa groaned and pushed her away while W'Kabi laughed, "I am still too young." 

"But your scent is stronger. You have to be more careful, T'Challa, about the people you hang around." W'Kabi said. "Doms will soon flock around you. And you're the only omega in our country." 

"W'Kabi is right." Okoye said. "Alphas will say anything anything to get in—" 

"I know. I've heard this sermon many times my whole life. I don't need you two repeating it." T'Challa grumbled. 

He never expected this. No one told him that the older he got, the more the doms closest to him would become possessive and protective of him. And he didn't appreciate it. It was bad enough Baba kept a tight leash on him. He certainly wasn't going to take it off his friends. 

"You say that yet you keep looking towards Jabari. As if there's something there that has your interest." W'Kabi said knowingly. Because his friends didn't know what a secret was and kept his business in the streets. 

"You do not need to worry about it. I can take care of myself." T'Challa said. 

"We know that." Okoye said. "We just want what's best for you." 

T'Challa sighed. "I know. I'm sorry. I just..." He trailed off. Not knowing how to put so many emotions into a few words. 

"We get it." W'Kabi said, patting his shoulder, "If my father was as protective of me as your father is of you, I'd be tetchy too." T'Challa glared at him. 

Okoye smiled amusedly, "Come, we still have a lot of training to do today." 

\- 

"You smell different." M'Baku said, his nose shoved in T'Challa's neck. The omega slapped him away. 

"So I've been told." T'Challa said. 

"You know what that means?" The alpha said. 

"I am not old enough!" T'Challa insisted, his hands were wringing under the hill of blankets M'Baku buried him under. He didn't want to think about what his changing scent could mean. 

Mama told him (because Baba sure wasn't going to have the talk with him) that omegas started having heats when they were sixteen. He was four years away. 

"Your body does not care, it does what it wants." M'Baku said. 

"It's not fair." T'Challa said. He didn't mean to sound infantile but it's the only response he could muster. M'Baku only laughed heartily, as if T'Challa was being ridiculous. He handed the omega a warm drink. And dropped another think blanket on him. 

"M'Baku, stop being an alpha. I'm starting to sweat." T'Challa said. 

"I will not let you freeze to death." 

T'Challa sighed. If he start having heats, Baba would never let him out the castle again. He'd be furious if he knew where T'Challa was right now. But he still had about an hour before baba started to panic and sent Okoye after him. 

But still...he didn't feel like he was going in heat. He didn't feel any different at all. 

M'Baku sat beside him, closer than usual, wrapping an arm around him. T'Challa didn't think anything about it. Nakia has started doing the same thing. 

"It could be anything. Mama said it starts with fevers. I do not have a fever." 

"Your mama from another country? Or the one who has never seen or known an omega other than you." M'Baku said. 

T'Challa groaned. "What makes you so sure, huh? You haven't seen another omega either." 

"But we have betas. And they have heats." 

T'Challa cringed at hearing the word being said out loud. "Betas are not omegas. Just like they're not alphas. Your argument is ridiculous. I still have four years." 

"I give you three weeks and we'll see who's the ridiculous one." 

T'Challa gave the alpha a sly smirk. "If I'm right, I get one of the bones hanging from your ceiling." 

M'Baku laughed. "What do you want with it?" 

"To battle with it. It's huge." 

The alpha hummed, bringing a hand to his chin as if he was thinking deeply. "How about I give you my panther necklace?" 

All sorts of questions filled T'Challa's head. His tribe were the only ones who valued panther necklaces. M'Baku laughed at his speechlessness and got up, rummaging through a box made of bones across the room. 

"I found a panther in the mountains some time ago. She was dying of old age. I sat with her, until she was gone. I took her claws and had her body sent to to mainlands." M'Baku said as he lifted a necklace lined with the panther's claws. 'We dropped it in gold, for a promise of prosperity." 

"Wow!" T'Challa said in awe. The claws of an elder panther was believed to bring great wisdom and knowledge to whoever possessed them. It was considered a gift from bast. He reached out to touch it but M'Baku pulled it away. 

"And if I'm right?" M'Baku said. 

T'Challa purses his lips in thought. "I'll bring you a staff from my father's armory?" 

M'Baku narrowed his eyes. "It better not be vibranium." The Jabari rejected technology as if it were a plague. T'Challa never bothered M'Baku about it. He didn't understand their way but he respected it. And M'Baku reciprocated. 

"Do you think I would offer it if it was? Baba would kill us both. It's wooden. Not his style." T'Challa said. 

M'Baku peaked with interest but then his eyes narrowed again. "Is it strong?" 

T'Challa gave him a look. "No, it's a twig just like you." 

M'Baku threw a blanket over his head and laughed. 

**Two Weeks Later**

'Well, it wasn't three weeks so he still didn't win.' T'Challa thought as he shifted uncomfortably in his mother's embrace. Baba was hovering around the door, very sheepish. It was kind of strange, kind of cute. His father was always so certain and indisputable that it was weird for T'Challa to see him so nervous. 

When he woke up and felt as miserable as he did, T'Challa assumed he was sick. So he just stayed in bed. 

He could smell his parents when they came to the door. They didn't have a specific scent to him, not like Nakia and Okoye. They just scented like safety and home. They hovered behind the door for so long, T'Challa would have sworn he was mistaken but he heard them talking softly. Mama kept trying to convince Baba she knew what to do and Baba kept being firmly unconvinced since her correct to wrong ratio so far was not in her favor. 

When they finally popped their heads in, they looked unsure, not knowing what to expect. T'Challa didn't even say anything as this all happened. He was bundled under the covers, an eye uncovered so he could see. He was wondering when they were going to finally get over themselves and cure this terrible position he was in. 

They didn't say anything either. Mama just came to his bed, tentatively and cautiously pulled the covers back, sighing in relief when she saw him. T'Challa didn't know what she expected and he didn't put any effort into trying to figure it oit. She sat down beside him and wrapped him in her arms. While Baba stayed right where he was. 

If he wasn't in agony, it might have been funny. 

"How do you feel baby?" Mama finally asked. 

He was almost too miserable to speak but he knew if he didn't, they wouldn't know what was going on and panic. "I feel hot and my stomach hurts and my head hurts. Everything hurts." 

"You're in heat, you know?" She said. 

"Oh!" He said. He didn't know why he was so shocked. It's not like he wasn't told this was happening. "I thought I had time." 

"We did too." Mama said. "But don't worry, baby. It'll get better in a little bit." She said, kissing his hair. 

No one had told the omega what to expect. He didn't think anyone knew what to expect. He always thought that there were more omegas in other nations but it seemed as if his parents hadn't done much research. Or maybe they had and didn't find much information. 

But surely, in all the technological wonder that Wakanda embraced, they had a cure for his situation. 

Mama pulled back and told him to take off his clothes. And Baba turned to flee the room. T'Challa didn't know why. Baba was his father; it wasn't like this was the first time he saw his son without clothes. 

Mama got up and chased him, yelling his name, telling him to come back, right this second. 

T'Challa just shook his head as his did what mama told him do, but leaving on his underwear. He knew if Baba came back and saw him fully naked he'd just have to be chased down again. 

It didn't take mama long to reappear, pulling baba along as she pulled him by his arm, saying, "I can't believe the king ran away like that. Be here for your son." 

"This is not a sire's place." Baba said. "We don't even know how it makes him feel." 

"It helps. I know what I read. The closer family tied doms are to him, the better he will feel." Mama said. 

She was actually right. Whenever they far away, T'Challa felt significantly worse. He hated to admit that he had doubted her too but maybe Mama did know what she was doing. She walked into his kitchenette and open the refrigerator, grabbing a cup, and coming back to him. 

He had watched her mix the drink with herbs and spices. When she put it in away, he wished she had told him what it was for. She just told him it was something he might need later. 

"Drink this." She said, sitting beside him again. She looked up at Baba, shifting nervously on his feet. She reached over and grabbed his sleeve, pulling him down so he was sitting beside the omega. 

Baba sighed and scooted closer, holding him close. "Is this better?" He asked. 

The boy nodded and leaned on his chest, so Baba could finally relax. 

It went silent again, as he sipped the drink, but it was comfortable and he was glad he didn't have to concentrate on words and trying to gather a response. He felt safe in his parents embrace and having them close did seem to take the edge off. He didn't feel like jumping from a waterfall anymore. But if falling from tall heights somehow cured this, he'd still do it. And have someone catch him at the bottom. 

When he finished the drink, mama took the cup and told him to lie back as she got up, walking out the room. He thought she was going to get some sort of medicine but she came back with two big tubs of cloths soaking in ice water. And a thin piece of curved vibranium tucked under her arm. 

Baba looked at her strangely, "What's all this?" He asked. 

"It's going to help with the pain. I had to wait until the cloth was well soaked." She said as she handed one of the tubs off to baba. 

She put the vibranium over his stomach. It curved around his sides as if it were made specifically for him. She tapped it three times and the device started getting cold, and started vibrating, low and soft. 

"Oh, that's nice." T'Challa said. 

Mama smiled confidently, "See, I told you I know what I'm doing." She told baba. He still looked dubious, though. 

She reached into the tub of ice water and pulled up a towel, wringing it. She held it up. It had a T shaped hole in the middle of it and T'Challa was intrigued. 

"These ones are for his face." Mama explained. She laid the towel over his head, his eyes, nose, and mouth was uncovered though. The she started laying the the other towels over his arms, legs and body. Then layered them on again, and again. And soon baba joined in. 

T'Challa couldn't fathom a single reason why this was even happening? Was the water infused with medicine? We're the towels blessed by bast? 

They stopped for a moment and mama leaned down and asked, "Do you feel better?" 

It took every ounce of his inner will to not yell, 'No, woman! For Bast sake, get these towels off of me!' 

Instead he took a slow, deep breath and calmly said, "No, mama." 

He thought she would move on to plan B but when she said, 'We don't have enough on him." And they started layering on more towels, he realized this was her only plan. 

When mama asked him how he felt now, T'Challa said, "A lot better mama, thank you." Just so this madness could cease. 

Mama patted his cheeks, though he could barely feel it through all the layers of cloths. "Good. Now you just rest. Your baba and I will be back in a couple of hours. Nakia and Okoye will be guarding the door so you don't have to be afraid." 

"Okay, mama." T'Challa said. He heard his parents quietly leave the room. 

He was cold and wet but he didn't have the energy sit up and throw the towels in the hamper so he just stayed where he was. His parents did help a little bit. He didn't feel as feverish as he did before. And the pain didn't flare like it did when his parents left the first time so something must have helped. But he had a feeling it had more to do with the drink than the towels. 

It didn't take long before he smelled Nakia and Okoye getting near, stopping outside his door. That made him feel better too. He could smell a lot of unknown alphas in the proximity and knowing they were guarding the door made him feel safe. He knew no one would get past them. 

Though, there was no way his best friends were going to just mind their own business. It took about an hour but he heard the doors open, and he heard them gasp when they saw him. 

"Oh my goodness, he's cocooned!" Okoye said. He couldn't tell if she was teasing or serious. 

He heard them walk through the room towards his bed, and poke at the towels covering him. 

"Hey, I'm already suffering. I don't need you two making it worst." He grumbled. 

They giggled. "Who did this to you? I am sure this is a serious crime." Nakia said. 

T'Challa snorted. "Mama found it quite necessary." 

"Is it helping?" Nakia asked. 

"Of course not." T'Challa said, as he mustered enough energy to sit up and take the towels off his upper half. Okoye immediately shoved a piece of bread in his face, almost pushing it in his mouth. 

"The Queen said to keep you hydrated and fed." Okoye said. 

The omega took the food. "I can feed myself, thank you. What is with you alphas?" 

"We've never seen an omega in heat before. You can't blame us for simply following instincts." Nakia said, she rubbed his cheek with the back of her hand. 

He knew that being in heat meant he was fertile. And that his scent was pretty much acting as a mating call. So he hadn't known what to expect. He didn't know if the alphas around him wouldn't be able to control themselves or if even he would be...lustful. 

But he felt too horrible to feel any sort of arousal and Okoye and Nakia didn't seem lustful either. They didn't seemed different at all. 

"Do you feel different, being around me like this?" He asked. 

They shrugged. "No. You're scent is incredibly strong and I can smell your fertility but I don't feel different." Nakia said. T'Challa groaned, covered his face. 

Okoye said, "Yes! You can finally have babies." This was the most excited he's ever seen her. He never knew why the fact he could carry children seemed to fascinate her. Then again, a pregnant man would truly be a sight, he had to admit. 

"I will not get pregnant so do not be so excited. "T'Challa said. 

Okoye smiled slyly, "You said the same about heat, yet here you are." And Nakia laughed. He threw a wet towel at them. 

"For Bast sake, get out of my room." T'Challa said. They giggled all the way to the door. 

Okoye turned around and mouthed, "Babies." Closing the door just in time before another thrown towel could hit her. 

He scoffed as he laid back down, cuddling under the covers, which were cold and wet too but he couldn't bring himself to care. 

He was never going to carry children. He absolutely refused to.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man, a huge thank you to everyone who likes the story so far!!!! I really cant' thank you enough.
> 
> I really, really, REALLY hope you like the update. You have no idea how nervous I am about posting this. It went through a few revisions so I hope all the hard work produced a good chapter!
> 
> Also, this is definitely going to be longer than six chapters. I don't know what made me think otherwise. It'll probably be somewhere around ten. But who knows with me!

"I don't understand why I had to come." M'Baku whispered as they peeked around the corner, waiting for the guards to past the armory door.

"I tried to carry it. It's too heavy and big for me. I'm too young, still." T'Challa said, wishing the guards would hurry. He could feel his heart hammering in his chest, his stomach clenching with anxiety. If baba caught him sneaking around the castle with a Jabari alpha so soon after his first heat, his life would be over. Mama was still trying to convince baba that the omega could leave the castle when he wasn't in heat. Baba stayed firmly unconvinced, as always.

T'Challa couldn't blame him this time. No one knew how this would effect his life. They didn't even know how often it would occur. It took all his twelve years but T'Challa finally realized that his father was very cautious with the things he didn't understand but deeply cared about. His son was the epitome of that.

"Too young, or too omega?" M'Baku teased and T'Challa elbowed him in the stomach. The alpha just snickered quietly. The blow probably felt like a tickle to him.

"I'll be stronger than you one day. I promise." T'Challa said as he quickly ran ahead when the guards finally rounded the corner, out of sight. He knew they had to be quick. Another set of guards would be around very soon.

M'Baku snickered again, trying not to laugh out loud. "We shall see when I challenge you for the throne."

"You wouldn't!" T'Challa said. Even though he knew M'Baku would. He would be more surprised if M'Baku _didn't_ challenge him. Just so he could stop the technological growth. He didn't actually want the responsibility, T'Challa knew that as well.

"I will." M'Baku said. "Now, you have time to prepare."

"I'm always prepared." T'Challa said.

M'Baku laughed. "Like you were prepared for your heat?"

T'Challa groaned. "Shut up. Come, we have to move quickly. Guards come in once an hour." He opened the door, grabbing M'Baku's arm, yanking him in. The Jabari were big and strong, but not nimble.

The alpha looked around at all the weapons surrounding him, his expression equal parts fascinated and disgusted. This wasn't even the main armory. The Warriors had the latest and greatest Wakanda had to offer. These were the expired weapons.

The pieces were arranged chronologically. The weapons in the front hadn't been used in over two hundred years. Walking through was nice, like browsing a museum. Even M'Baku liked it. T'Challa could tell by the way he went quiet and thoughtful but no longer seemed disgusted as his eyes poured over the history before him. Especially as they moved towards the back.

The staff was leaning against the furthest wall, taller than M'Baku, with a balled hook on the top. It was very old but excellently kept, as was everything in Wakanda. T'Challa didn't know the history of it or why it held up so well. He thought it had something to do with the mystics. Maybe it was blessed by Bast. Who knows?

M'Baku saw it and though his eyes glittered approvingly, he gave T'Challa a narrow glare. "It must be old. It will fall apart on the first impact or it's vibranium."

T'Challa rolled his eyes so hard, he could feel the muscle strain in his eyes. "Vibranium is light. You know that. And why would I give you something defective? Jabari are so suspicious and ungrateful—mmrph..."

M'Baku placed his huge hand over T'Challa's face, effectively shushing him, "You must be close to another heat, Prince. You're nagging more than usual." M'Baku laughed as the omega slapped his hand away. Before T'Challa could dream up a proper retort, the alpha picked up the staff, shaking it a little to test the weight, humming in admiration. He swung it back and forth a couple of times. When he was done with his little test, M'Baku stood the staff up beside him, "Not bad."

T'Challa rolled his eyes, "Good, now let's go."

-

Getting out was easier than getting in. There were many doors and windows that only opened from the inside. After a couple of quick turns, they climbed out a window that was right above a path that led to the woods.

When they were outside, T'Challa exhaled, releasing all his anxiety. It would still be terrible if baba caught him but the chances of that happening were far less since they were outside.

M'Baku was unfamiliar with this way, so T'Challa led him to a cave that traveled back to Jabari.

"You know, Prince. I do rather like this staff. It is fit for a king." M'Baku said, as they walked. His voice genuinely pleased. He was walking with it as if it has always been by his side.

T'Challa nodded, "It probably belonged to one, a long time ago." It might have even been taken from the Jabari tribe, back when their ancestors were constantly at war. But T'Challa kept that to himself. M'Baku might have already known. If not, it didn't need to be said.

"Yet, you give something so valuable to me?" M'Baku said.

T'Challa nodded, "Yes, a valuable friend deserves a valuable gift...and maybe even a peace offering between our tribes. We're one people. Hopefully, when we are in rule, we can act like it."

M'Baku smiled brightly, slightly bashful. "Careful Prince, you keep this up, I won't have a reason to challenge you for the throne. Your father should be proud of you diplomatic efforts."

T'Challa sighed, "Baba would chain me to my room if he knew of my diplomatic efforts."

M'Baku nodded with a sigh, "Mine as well."

M'Baku's father, N'Gamo, was actually pretty ruthless about the separation. If he had caught the omega in M'Baku's room, any of the many times he's been there, N'Gamo would have thrown the young prince out in the snow and had the warriors chase him back to the mainlands. T'Challa had seen it done before, to a young River Tribe alphess trying to court a Jabari beta. He didn't think the girl had been in any real danger, N'Gamo just wanted her to be in real fear so she wouldn't dare come back again. T'Challa's father would have just sent her away.

But M'Baku was the oldest, N'Gamo had a lot of trust in him. And the younger siblings were devious little souls, always kept N'Gamo busy (and M'Baku humored). It was far simpler for T'Challa to visit M'Baku than the other way around. The omega could climb through the window to M'baku's room and go completely unnoticed since N'Gamo left the alpha to his own devices.

"But a truce requires mutual efforts." M'Baku said as he reached into one of the pockets of his many-layered fur garment. He drew out the claw necklace he showed T'Challa when they initially made their wager. M'Baku put it around the omega's neck. "I can't think of anyone in the Panther Tribe more worthy of this, not even the King."

T'Challa smiled, "Thank you, M'Baku. This truly means a lot."

The alpha smiled back, lifting T'Challa onto his shoulder, and started telling the omega about the latest mischevious deeds his younger siblings had been up too.

-

After the third time, T'Challa figured out his heats came every two months, only lasting for a few days. He was grateful the occurrence was low, it didn't bother his lifestyle too much.

However, he noticed his parents were slipping into old patterns. For those few days, he was locked and guarded in his room. Being locked away seemed unnecessary to him. Maybe T'Challa was overthinking it; maybe he was just sensitive because of baba's obsession with keeping him safe and confined within the castle's walls. But the omega kept thinking about the future. When the Panther mantle would be passed to him, when he would sit on the throne as king, he couldn't run and hide in his room every time he felt the feverish signs of a heat coming.

It didn't seem to affect the doms in his life. Okoye and Nakia we're still unaffected by his heats. They often sat with him through it, whenever his parents weren't burying him under towels. And he didn't feel much different. There was the pain, discomfort, and fatigue but it was manageable with whatever medication his mother concocted for the occasion.

He couldn't help but think it would be better to suppress his heats. Being completely incapacitated by such a small thing seemed ridiculous.

When he foolishly told his parents his thoughts, they scolded him, telling him it was irresponsible and dangerous to tamper with nature. He needed to accept who he was.

The words had the opposite effect. Not for the first time, T'Challa wished he had been born a dom like everyone else, Being an omega came with far more burdens than he would rather bear. Especially with being a Prince. How could he rule a country one day if he had to tangle with heats, submissive behaviors, possessive doms, and the horrors of childbearing hanging over his head?

Mama told him he was thinking about submission the wrong way but she didn't elaborate on what the right way was. Had she, he might have felt inclined to agree. T'Challa certainly didn't feel submissive. He didn't behave submissively around everyone, just his parents, and only during certain situations. So he was left confused.

That was the worst part. Trying to find his way as the only omega in a nation of doms who had never encountered an omega before was confusing and utterly lonely. No one understood him. Honestly, T'Challa didn't even understand himself.

But he wasn't going to let this, his gender, stop him from being a great King one day.

He started training during his heats, in private. He figured if he built a resistance to being active while in utter misery, he'd be more prepared if he had to fight while in heat. He started sneaking outside, too, walking amongst the people. He wore a bright green robe and a mask. The River Tribe Warriors had to complete several trials before they were initiated and they wore similar attire during their trials. No gave him a second glance.

He was more concerned about his scent. To conceal it, he chose a thick robe and doused it with the strongest fragrances he could find. He didn't care how it smelled as long as he didn't smell like an omega.

It seemed to work. The people around him definitely knew something was up but they couldn't tell what it was. He knew by the perplexed look in their eyes as he walked by. He didn't stay out long, just enough to get comfortable with being surrounded by unknown alphas. Unfamiliar doms in his immediate proximity made him more fearful than he would ever want to admit. That had to stop. When he took the throne, T'Challa wanted to be as indisputable and unchallenged as his father. He wasn't going to let heats stop him from achieving that.

He kept his activities hidden, didn't even tell his friends because he knew they would tell him to stop, especially in regards to safety.

Well...he did tell one friend.

-

"Why do you always feel the need to drag me along with your bad decisions?" Nakia asked as they walked the streets of Wakanda, where the people lived.

The were headed to the Medicine Hall, at the very end of the market. T'Challa wanted to avoid being seen so they took the residential route. Wakandans didn't spend much time in their homes. They liked to live. It was impossible to do such hidden behind closed doors.

"Because you snitch on me the least." T'Challa said.

"I've never snitched on you." Nakia defended. "It was always Okoye's doing."

T'Challa chuckled. "That's why Okoye isn't here."

Nakia smiled. "You just didn't want to hear her complaining about you not having babies."

T'Challa laughed. "That might have had something to do with it too." He paused for a moment, thinking about what she said, probably taking it more seriously than she meant but inside he was...conflicted, slightly, "Do you really think this is a bad idea? Do you truly think hiding in my room every time I'm...you know...is effective." He still hated to hear it said out loud.

Nakia thought about it quietly for a long time, before she shrugged, "I think you don't want to be an omega and that this will somehow change that."

T'Challa groaned, rolling his eyes, "Don't you dare say I need to accept who I am. I've heard that enough."

"But...if you could magically become an alpha, would you?" Nakia asked.

T'Challa went quiet as he thought about it. It really didn't require much thought. In his heart, he knew the answer. But it wasn't the answer Nakia wanted to hear. It wasn't even something he was proud of. He wished it was easy to accept himself like his parents kept telling him but he couldn't help but envy the doms. Their lives seemed so much simpler.

"I don't know." T'Challa said as they rounded a corner, coming up behind a building, their destination.

"Yes you do." Nakia said quietly. T'Challa ignored her as they approached the thatched hut. He could hear the medicine men and women talking amongst themselves inside.

He handed her a list, "Go in and ask for these things." He whispered. He didn't want the people inside to hear.

"Why me?" Nakia asked, but she took the paper out his hands.

"My parents would know about it before I walked out the door. You know fast-spreading gossip is Wakanda's greatest talent." He said.

"What should I say?"

"You don't have to say anything. Just go in and give them the list." T'Challa looked at her narrowly, impatiently.

She read the list, lips pursing, "How do you even know this will work?" T'Challa relaxed a little, realizing she was concerned about his safety. He tried not to get angry when the alphas in his life become overprotective. They were just behaving instinctually.

"I did my research. It'll adjust my hormones but not harmfully." T'Challa said as he gently nudged her, hoping she would just go in already, and not ask questions.

"Adjust them?" Nakia echoed. T'Challa nodded. "How?"

He shrugged, "It'll either stop my heats or greatly lighten them."

"Stop your heats...so it's a contraceptive?" Nakia asked. Such things were looked down upon in Wakanda.

"It lowers my fertility. Not stop it." T'Challa said. Not that it mattered to him. He'd get a hysterectomy if he could. But this was as close as he could get if his research was right; though, he had been very thorough and careful. He didn't want to ruin his body either.

She looked at him, her eyes narrow and scrutinizing, and just when he thought she was going to object she said, "Fine, I'll go. But only if it's for the right reasons."

T'Challa nodded, "Of course."

She turned with a sharp sigh and headed towards the front door.

**\- Age 13 -**

"You're scent is heavy today." Okoye said. As T'Challa stood there, staring into space, as he had been for the past several minutes. "Perhaps we should call it off and try again in a few days."

T'Challa took a deep, nervous, frightened breath. Ignoring her because he didn't want to face her implications.

It was their first simulation. Their training had advanced and T'Challa was learning to fight with his Dora Milaje as a team. But being the one giving orders was more nerving than he could have ever imagined. There was so much responsibility on his shoulders. Giving incorrect commands could lead to the death of people he loved dearly. Instead of constantly preaching about staying safe as an omega, baba should have warned him about what combat would feel like. And this wasn't even a real encounter, just training. T'Challa hoped he wouldn't falter like this when it became real.

It didn't help that he felt terrible. Since he started self-medicating, his heats were extremely light. He either skipped a heat, not having any symptoms, or they were so slight, he barely noticed. And his scent diminished significantly, as a whole, not just during heats. 

But this morning he woke up sweating, with a vicious headache. And now, his scent had picked, very suddenly...but this didn't feel like a heat. Usually, his heat symptoms started very low and gradually grew to unmitigated misery. This might be something else. But what?

T'Challa took another deep breath. Ignoring Okoye as she turned to him and quirked an eyebrow. And he could feel Nakia's worried gaze on him. He didn't even know why he was stalling. It wasn't like he didn't know what to do.

Three huts, eight trees, fifteen bushes, and five hidden threats. Probably more, W'Kabi liked throwing him off, it made the training more realistic. He could see shadows cast on the ground where the threats were hidden.

The goal was to get past the threats to recover stolen Vibranium hidden in one of the huts. The exercise was actually incredibly simple. W'Kabi chose to go easy on them, for once.

"Ryo and Xoliswa, go west." T'Challa ordered, finally. There were only two threats on their side and T'Challa knew they could quickly disable them and be useful elsewhere. "Nakia and Okoye, you go east." There were three threats on their side but they were physically and combatively stronger, so they could handle more.

Ahead of him, he saw only one threat but he could tell by the shadow it was W'Kabi. T'Challa had yet to defeated W'Kabi and he had a sneaky suspicion that he wasn't going to today. He felt so awful., there was no way the omega could be at the top of his game. But T'Challa figured he could hold his own until Okoye and Nakia could help him.

The ladies got into position. He nodded and they charged, following directions.

Before T'Challa reached him, W'kabi threw three faux daggers at him that the omega easily evaded but the movement slowed his momentum and when he moved to dodge the last dagger, another alpha, named K'Tando, dropped from the tree and kicked T'Challa in his chest, knocking him down. But the omega was quick and jumped to his feet. He grabbed a rod from his utility belt and snapped it, making it turn into a spear.

W'Kabi taught him to fight defensively. Omegas were much smaller and weaker than doms. That meant taking a hit could be critical. So, the omega needed to take as few blows as possible and make every strike count.

He managed to knock K'Tando out fairly quickly. Since they were using training weapons that flattened on impact, his spear made a sound when he delivered a killing blow. So K'Tando walked off the training grounds when T'Challa stabbed him in the stomach.

But W'Kabi was not giving T'Challa any breaks, and he didn't pull a single punch. On the bigger scale, the omega was grateful but at the moment, feeling the pain of each strike, T'Challa wished W'Kabi would have a little mercy. The omega quickly glanced around for his two best friends. Even Ryo and Xoliswa should be free by now. But a gang of threats had come out of nowhere and both sides suddenly had a lot more to deal with. He should have expected that. W'Kabi loved to monkey wrench.

T'Challa kept trying though. He was holding his own pretty well until W'Kabi caught him in a lock and as they struggled, W'Kabi tossed his dagger in the air and threw T'Challa to the ground. By the time T'Challa had jumped to his feet, W'Kabi had caught the dagger and stabbed him in the chest. The faux weapon beeped, indicating T'Challa was out. Everyone stopped fighting at that point, the simulation ending since T'Challa got killed. The Dora came over to T'Challa while the other trainers started heading inside as if the training was over.

T'Challa groaned disappointingly, as he doubled over, trying to catch his breath. But exhaustion wasn't the only reason T'Challa needed a moment. He felt a sharp, twisting pain in his stomach. Unlike anything, he's ever felt before. He started growing concerned, wondering what was wrong. A heat never felt like this.

"You're becoming quite the challenge, T'Challa." W'Kabi said as he patted T'Challa's back.

"I still haven't beat you." T'Challa said, in between pants. "But I will. One day soon."

W'Kabi chuckled. "Evaluation."

T'Challa stood up, ignoring the sharp pain in stomach. "I gave the wrong commands." He said. It seemed so obvious now, what he should have done. "I should have brought one of the Dora with me. I'm still too inexperienced to fight alone."

W'Kabi nodded approvingly. "Good. But don't look so downhearted. You're doing far better than my other students, even the alphas. I hate to admit it Prince, but I underestimated you." T'Challa smiled, feeling a little better about failing so horribly. Especially since the alphas around him fought far more deftly. "What else?" W'Kabi said.

"I should have brought Nakia with me and paired Okoye with Ryo because their strengths make them a balanced team...and...I should have sent Xoliswa the long way, around the fighting so she could search the huts."

W'Kabi smiled brightly, "Very Good!" Then his face dropped, unimpressed, "With all that staring and stalling, I thought this was the plan you would execute."

T'Challa groaned, chagrined. "I wanted to make sure I gave good commands."

"Stalling gives you time to second guess and second-guessing rarely leads to a better plan." W'Kabi said as he pressed one of his kimoyo beads. The morphed sand in the simulation room dropped and the holograms around them faded away revealing a big, empty room with gray walls. "But I must praise your efforts, T'Challa. Fighting at the start of a heat, and almost winning? I've never seen a beta do that." T'Challa understood know, why their training was ending early.

"I'm not in heat." T'Challa said. Stopping before he elaborated. Telling anyone his heats were suppressed would only lead the most negative of consequences. Not to mention that if he wasn't in heat, then what was wrong with him? T'Challa didn't want to be pampered any more than he already was.

W'Kabi gave him a look, pointing a finger at him. "You, young Prince, should be in your room. We'll pick up where we left off when you're back. Take one of the Dora with you. I don't want a guard or servant getting any funny ideas."

T'Challa rolled his eyes as he started walking towards the locker rooms. "I can handle myself."

"I know." W'Kabi said. "But if something happens to you, the King and Queen will have my hide when they get back." There had been an attack on the southern border and his father left to investigate a couple of days ago. Because the rest of the world thought Wakanda was a third world country, other nations often tried to send help and relief whenever crisis struck. So his mother was addressing the UN, discussing why Wakanda didn't need any assistance at this time.

T'Challa usually felt an immense sense of freedom when both of his parents were absent but this time he just felt...anxious and fearful. They way he did when he was in heat and his parents weren't near, just multiple times worse.

T'Challa sighed. "Fine. I'll go to my room immediately." The tense atmosphere surrounding his overprotective friends evaporated. Bast, it was so frustrating, being constantly coddled.

"You haven't had a heat in quite a while." Okoye said. "And it's coming very strong. Should we be concerned?" She asked. As if T'Challa would even know.

"Mother told me it would change as I get older. I think I'm fine." T'Challa said, speaking the truth. But as history has proven, mama didn't always know what she was talking about. But the words calmed his friends and that's all that mattered.

"Babies!" Okoye said. "I'll be an auntie soon!" Her excitement was real. Ryo and Xoliswa shook their heads in amusement and W'Kabi laughed as they followed Okoye inside.

But before he could walk in, Nakia grabbed his arm, pulling him close. "Are you sure you're okay? This could be an unforeseen side effect of the medication." She whispered. T'Challa was glad she knew the proper volume of a whisper, unlike someone he knew.

"I'm fine. Honestly." T'Challa said so she wouldn't worry. She sighed, studying him for a long time before she nodded tightly, going inside, obviously unconvinced. T'Challa took a deep breath, allowing himself to lean against the wall for a moment since he was alone. The pain in his stomach had worsened and his headache was splitting.

He just couldn't figure out what was wrong...though, in the back of his mind, he knew. If he wasn't in heat, his friends would have known. His heat scent was distinct, from what they've told him. And these were his heat symptoms, they were just amplified to a wretched level.

But T'Challa didn't want to believe this. Everything had gotten better when his heats stopped, when his scent lightened and shifted, almost becoming beta. His parents started treating him his age, his friends stopped being so protective, his people stopped looking at him as if he were an alien. With his heats coming back, he was...an omega again.

And that was the last thing T'Challa wanted.

**Author's Note:**

> really hope you enjoyed it! Please leave feedback and feel free to concrit; I am always looking for opportunities to grow.


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